M A I N   N E W S

Anna says he is ready to talk to Rahul, PMO or Chavan
Vibha Sharma/TNS

New Delhi, August 22
On a day Prime Minister Manmohan Singh reiterated that his government is open to discussions with Anna Hazare and the Gandhian’s supporters further upped the ante by laying seige on the homes of several Congress Ministers MPs, there was a flurry of activity in the government to bring Team Anna to the negotiating table.

Anna said he was not interested in negotiating with non-political mediators like spiritual guru Bhayyuji Maharaj or senior Maharashtra bureaucrat UC Sarangi, who were roped in by the government for back-channel talks.The activist said he will only talk to official mediators, which could be a high-ranking official of the Prime Minister’s Office, Congress General Secretary Rahul Gandhi or Maharashtra CM Prithviraj Chavan.

There was no official confirmation but Prime Minister could make a fresh appeal for dialogue in Parliament tomorrow if the opposition parties allow it to function. There were also indications that the government could show flexibility on Team Anna’s demand for inclusion of the PM within the ambit of the Lokpal.

While stating repeatedly that it is open to a dialogue with Team Anna, the government is also firm that it will not allow Parliament’s supremacy to be compromised. The government has made it clear that the standing committee is the appropriate forum to debate the provisions of the Lokpal Bill.

As Anna’s fast entered the seventh day, the UPA government went into a damage control mode with Congress MP Abhishek Singhvi, who heads the Parliamentary Standing Committee which is scrutinising the Lokpal Bill, explaining that the panel had the powers to make significant changes to the official draft.

Fielded as a peacemaker, Singhvi called for a “little more reasonableness, restraint and flexibility” and hinted that provisions of Team Anna’s Jan Lokpal bill could be be given due consideration by the committee and promised to present an “acceptable to all” Bill within three months.

“There is an attempt to reach a solution…We are open to suggestions from everyone,” Singhvi said.

There was no official word till late this evening about the ongoing parleys between the government and Team Anna. Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, who returned to Delhi from Kolkata this evening, had a lengthy meeting with his senior Cabinet colleagues on the day’s developments.

Team Anna remains resolute on its demand for the passage of the Jan Lokpal Bill by August 30. So far, no official mediator has approached the team. However, spiritual leader Sri Sri Ravi Shanker, who met Anna Hazare this afternoon, is said to be mediating between the two sides.

While insisting that it would not go back on its demand for the inclusion of the Prime Minister in the ambit of the Lokpal Bill, Team Anna is understood to be flexible on the issue of excluding the judiciary under the Lokpal, provided the Judicial Accountability Bill is strengthened.

Following a call from Ramlila Maidan, groups of Team Anna supporters had gheraoed the homes of several MPs demanding that Hazare's Jan Lokpal Bill be passed in Parliament.Some such visits even met with support for Anna. In Mumbai, Congress MP Priya Dutt made a pro-Hazare statement while her colleague Sanjay Nirupam appeared in an Anna cap. Congress MP from Wardha Datta Meghe asked party spokesman Manish Tewari to apologise to Anna for his “unkind words” Pushed on the defensive following reports of hooliganism, key member of core team Arvind Kejriwal explained that the activists aim was not to destabilise the government. He also denied allegations that he was inciting violence by asking people to organise such protests.